Electric vehicles such as cars and bicycles have become popular in the past few years for obvious reasons. You’ve probably considered taking the plunge into e-transport yourself. But, with so many options–design, range, power, and special features–choosing the right e-vehicle for you can seem overwhelming.

If you are looking for an affordable, sturdy, ergonomically designed option that is practical, efficient, compact and attractive, consider the OjO Scooter.

For starters, it’s well made. This isn’t a cheap foreign knock-off, but a product designed in the USA. Customers report incredibly positive experiences with the OjO and the company’s customer service. The OjO features a fully wielded aluminum frame and aircraft quality plastic parts.

It includes stable, all-weather pneumatic tubeless tires with mud flaps. Featured are front and rear disc brakes, full front and rear suspension, and heavy-duty shocks. It runs on a heavy-duty 500 watt Hypergear rear-hub motor. The Lithium-ion battery is logically positioned under the slip-proof floorboard and, while you don’t need to remove it to recharge it, you can remove it easily.

Having fun getting around

The OjO is waterproof, notable compared to competitors who warn against using their products in wet or rainy conditions. Let’s be practical here. For commuting, a rider will encounter occasional rain or wet conditions, such as sprinkler run-off in the street. An e-vehicle should be able to handle this. (That’s not to say that any two-wheeled vehicle is completely stable in wet conditions. You need to ride sensibly on wet surfaces with the OjO, as you would with any two-wheeled scooter, bike or motorcycle.)

The OjO in Grey. Note the helmet hook. Basket and rear-view mirrors are optional add-on accessories.

Another huge plus is that the OjO is delivered fully assembled! Buyers report that the packing is excellent, and their OjO scooters arrive in perfect condition. If you’ve been shopping for e-bikes online before, you’ll know what a rarity this actually is. Many people end up assuming they’ll have to return an ordered bike at least once due to packaging damage or poor quality. Once a reasonably acceptable bike is delivered intact, one often still has to take it to a local bike shop, investing more money in making adjustments and repairs to things like warped spokes, none of which should be necessary with a new bike. You won’t have such worries if you order an OjO. In the off chance that you do encounter some problem, OjO customer service is reported to be phenomenal, something else which sadly is uncommon with some competitors. The company has a U.S. presence, so you won’t have to deal with foreign customer service should the need arise.

Closeup of the OjO tire, suspension, shocks and disc brakes

They aren’t kidding when they say that the OjO is sturdy. The official weight limit quoted is 300 lbs., typically much higher than average for e-bikes, and it’s been hinted that the OjO is actually ranked for a much higher weight limit. Not only is this great for heavier riders, or people who carry gear with them, but it attests to the power of the OjO, especially its ability to climb hills. Unlike many e-bikes, the OjO has built-in sensors that automatically detect when you start up a hill, and adjust the power accordingly. Users laud the ease at which the OjO takes on hilly routes without major drain on power or distance levels.

OjO fans relax on the grass

While traditional scooters aren’t the most stable design generally, the OjO is ergonomically designed for easy and stable handling. It is fitted with a nonslip board cover, and can be used seated or standing up with the seat removed. It’s not an off-road vehicle, but should be able to handle mild off-pavement surfaces, such as a grassy park area.

OjO has a built-in retractable plug…easy!

Easy to recharge without needing to remove the Lithium-ion battery, the charge time is estimated at 6-8 hours for a 25 mile range. Users note that this figure is accurate, even for heavier riders and hilly terrain. The OjO has a retractable onboard plug that just pulls out of the front. Plug it into any wall socket (your typical 110- or 120-volt), and it’s recharging. When done, just unplug and the cord retracts right back into the OjO. If you prefer to remove the battery, perhaps for security reasons, you can also order a separate battery charger.

Life is even better when you can be environmentally responsible in such an enjoyable way

Speaking of security, the OjO has built-in, easy to use, and logical security features. It uses a remote keyless fob control. The scooter cannot be operated without this fob. You can set a motion alarm to alert you if someone tries to mess with your ride. The fob will also locate the scooter from a distance. If you still want to use a traditional bike cable lock, you can run it through one of the tires.

The OjO will attain speeds up to 20 miles per hour, with three speed settings and a convenient thumb control on the handlebars as well as the touch-panel. This speed limit (along with the max 500-watt motor) ensure that the OjO is legally categorized as a “bicycle” rather than a motorcycle. This means you can ride your OjO in bike lanes or anywhere else you’d use a bicycle. You can park it on the sidewalk, or bring it with you into a building. Depending on where you live, you can probably also bring it onto a train, subway, or certain types of buses (such as those with handicap lifts and wheelchair space). You could ride it to an outdoor event such as a parade, and use it as your seat too (it includes a kickstand.) It’s still wise to check your local laws, just to be sure your community doesn’t have any off-the-wall rules about e-bikes.

Because the OjO is legally a “bicycle”, you don’t need a license, auto insurance, or car registration. This provides a big savings annually compared to a motorcycle or car.

The OjO touchscreen panel. Play your tunes with the Bluetooth speakers built into the front column.

The OjO has an intuitive capacitive touchscreen to run the features. In addition to a thumb lever you can set one of three speeds on the screen, control the built-in LED front and rear lighting system, operate the built-in dual Bluetooth Surround Sound speakers, recharge your phone with the USB port, and check current and historical distance and speed figures.

While the OjO doesn’t come with storage (other than a fold-down hook on the inside front for your helmet), you can order a basket separately that fits underneath the seat. For safety reasons, if you plan to carry anything, this would be a good idea. Likewise, you should invest in the add-on rear-view mirrors. Future accessories planned include a phone holder and a beverage holder, but you can surely jery-rig something suitable in the meantime. Replacement batteries, tires, shocks, and other parts are also available.

Transporting the OjO shouldn’t be difficult. It weighs 65 lbs., although you could remove the battery and seat temporarily and move separately to lighten the overall load a bit. It fits into the trunk of a Prius, but not necessarily all cars. Some owners have used bike racks with success. However, if you are hoping to take it on public transportation, be sure it will fit on their gear, and that they’ll permit you to bring it.

At $1,999.00, the OjO is competitively priced in the e-bike market, and offers many benefits. You will save on gasoline, oil, maintenance, car insurance, licensing, registration, parking, and tolls. If you commute to work, you’ll only pay for about half of the electricity needed to recharge the OjO, since you’ll be plugging in at work during your shift, but the electricity needed isn’t going to amount to much expense. You may also find that you save a lot of time. No more trips to the gas station, congested traffic, or route limitations to certain roadways. Just like with a bike, you can cut through campuses, parking lots, parks, and the like.

Finally, you’ll probably save a lot of emotional energy as well. Rather than dreading your daily commute, on edge travelling to and from work, school, or errands, you may find a lovely alternate path from Point A to Point B, arriving refreshed rather than drained and cranky.